


The Tide Jewel

by radishleaf



Series: Petal Scatter - Saika Oneshots [5]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Action/Adventure, F/F, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-16
Updated: 2019-01-16
Packaged: 2019-10-11 00:15:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17436197
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/radishleaf/pseuds/radishleaf
Summary: Up against the unrelenting force of Laela's greed, Saika joins her on an adventure to claim the Tide Jewel—a unique treasure of immense worth.





	The Tide Jewel

**Author's Note:**

> hey! this is a short story i've wanted to write for a while, once again featuring my beloved OCs, saika and laela. i've always had a fondness for adventure, so here we go! have some girlfriends deciding to brave the world due to some one-sided greed lol
> 
> as always, kindly disregard any grammatical errors, punctuation mistakes, and the like. i tried to be thorough. enjooooy.
> 
> for links to my tumblr, twitter, and other exterior sources for contact or requests, please refer to here: [plonk](https://radishleaf.carrd.co/).

The salty tang of the sea wafted thickly on the wind; waves roiling onto the stone and wood piers with the splashes and sprays of white foam. Sailors groaned as they hefted and pushed crates from their boats; the muscles of their biceps bulging from the excessive strain as their captain coolly negotiated pay through loud laughter and claps on the back. Saika’s eyes were trained on the flapping of the white sails of the many boats stationed at the docks, trying to distract herself from the patience grinding her thoughts to dust. Laela’s punctuality was always something to be admired; when the blonde claimed she’d never been late to being early, Saika never doubted her tact.

Yet the claim was dashed to the wayside considering Laela was a good half an hour late. The oni tried in vain to not let awful thoughts cloud her sensibilities, but she couldn’t help but worry. There was a reason she preferred to be landlocked and let Laela take to the seas; she’d all but survive if she hit the water, dragged down by the weight of her chains.  

Saika blew a lock of hair from her face and leaned back onto the bench that served to be one of the only resting spots near the docks. To worry at length about such a person was a new feeling for Saika. A pertinent lesson of the oni—her people—was that action spoke louder than thought. To cut ties without any lingering emotional attachment was an easy task for them. Unless an individual happened to be an oni’s One, then saying goodbye was much easier said than done.

 _Yea, I admit, I’m attached_ , Saika thought, scanning eyes across the docks again. _She knows that, too. That’s probably why she puts up with me. B-but the idea she might, she might be my—_

Saika’s attention piqued at the sound of very familiar laughter; bright, joyful, that sent a flutter through the oni’s chest despite how faraway it was. At once, Saika was to her feet and rushing across the length of the docks, her gaze flicking between each boat. It was when the laughter grew louder that Saika’s eyes snapped straight on Laela.

She leaned against a stack of crates, a smile smoothed on her face as she exchanged a few words with another captain. Members of her crew—bedraggled and worn men and women—emptied her claim from her recent expedition from the belly of the ship to shore. While Saika had no idea what she’d gone for, the shimmer of a cask-sized brick of silver was enough to convince her Laela had claimed an impressive haul.

Yet, there was only one treasure in Saika’s eyes. Rushing up to her, Laela choked back a yelp as Saika scooped up the blonde and crushed her in a tight, welcoming embrace. Once Laela had registered who it was, her laughter grew ever more mirthful, and she threw arms about Saika’s neck.

“Sai!” she chimed. “There you are! I just sent off one of my crew to find you.”

Saika nosed her jaw lovingly. “There was no need for you to do that,” she said. “I heard you all of the way across the docks.”

“You mean my laughing?” Laela cocked her head. “You picked me out by my _laughter?_ Do you know me that well, Sai?”

“Of course, I do,” Saika replied. “I know everything about you, Laela. Inside _and_ out.”

The oni waggled her eyebrows when she said this, leaning it for a kiss that was completely denied.  Laela clamped her hand on her face and pushed her back; the insisting gesture causing Saika to release her hold on the blonde and lower her to the floor. Brow twitching in annoyance, Laela ignored the heat to her cheeks as she turned her attention to the wooing and yipping members of her crew. Even a hiss of, “Get back to work!” couldn’t break up the throng, so Laela extricated herself from the docks; Saika dragged along in tow.

“A-ah,” Saika stammered as she was pulled with surprising strength. “Where are we going?”

The pungent freshness of the sea was exchanged for the bustling, bristling streets of Hinagiku Village—the largest and most populated area of the Borderlands. Space was a nonexistent notion within the village; as if a giant pair of hands came together to squeeze every establishment, every home, every person into the tiniest nook or cranny. Pardons and other basic forms of politeness never left residents’ lips; bodies simply slipped passed each other with only the courtesy of a grunt or sigh as a verbal exchange. It was a norm Saika had grown accustomed to, but one Laela still appeared to be traversing.

Saika’s only attachment to Laela was by the grip on her wrist. In the crowd that filled the main street of the village, the oni couldn’t even see the wheat-colored crown of Laela that, under different circumstances, made her stand out like a beacon in the night. All heads that could’ve been Laela’s were exchanged for the unknown faces of passersby. Yet, Laela’s determination was overpowering, not once letting Saika stop to catch her breath as she stumbled after her.

Eventually, the clogged street opened up to a familiar way lined with storefronts. Saika’s legs straightened, gaining confidence in an area she knew like the back of her hand, as she continued to be led by Laela. The blonde’s steely façade remained pinned on the direction she traveled, reminding the oni of her ship steadfastly cutting through the water toward whatever destination it was set to. Saika almost opened her mouth again to ask her where they were going, but thought against it a beat later when she didn’t want to disturb Laela’s lovely countenance when she concentrated.

Hana’s tea shop was a flat abode far from the main street. It barely drew customers, but when it did, it didn’t take a keen ear to hear them from within. The thin walls let all manner of noise leak out, but the only sound to pierce through the tea shop’s silence was Saika’s cry of greeting as she was dragged inside.

“Hanaaaa!” Saika exclaimed. “Are you in here?”

Laela winced. “Do you have to yell like that?” she asked, but her question went breezily ignored.

Hana’s head lifted come the slide of the shop’s door. The only youthful bit about her were her eyes—firm and hard with anger as she set it upon Saika—while the rest of her reflected a grizzled old woman. Her grey locks were tightly wound in a bun, set against tan, sunbeaten skin marred with all manner of wrinkles and spots.

Hana hit her _kiseru_ clean into the tobacco tray near the order window and huffed when the metal mouthpiece clicked against her teeth. “Yer gonna bring the place down with yer yellin’, ya lazy dipshit!” she cursed, shaking a fist at Saika. “Keep it down!”

“Oh, Hana!” Saika said. “There you are! Can we get—”

“Ya got some nerve orderin’ somethin’ when ya skipped yer shift today!” Hana barked. “I oughta make ya work right now to make up fer it!”

“T-the shop’s empty!”

“I don’ care! Ya good fer nothin’, thinkin’ ya can work whenever… I swear! I oughta fire ya!”

“ _Hana!_ ” Saika flashed her palms innocently. “C’mon, calm down! I was picking up Laela, okay? _She’s_ the reason I’m late.”

Laela pursed her lips upon being used as the excuse for Saika’s folly, but she didn’t speak up to support her. Sometimes leaving her to the clutches of the closest person to her was the best option. Laela let the two bicker about a myriad of things before deciding to cut through the red tape.

Hana ignored Saika when she shouted something about pay, shifting concentration to Laela over her shoulder. Nodding her head in greeting, she said, “Glad ta see ya in good health, Laela. What can I get’cha?”

Laela chuckled sheepishly when Saika ducked her head, taking this as a sign she was dismissed. When the oni dropped herself at a table and sighed, Laela said, “Just two servings of green tea, please.”

“Ya sure that’s all ya want?” Hana asked.

“Yes, that’s all. Thank you, Hana.”

“’Course. Always a pleasure to serve a _payin’_ customer.” Hana gave Saika a hardened side-eye when she said this, but this time, it was Saika who ignored her.

Saika pouted. “Why’d you bring me all the way here?” she asked Laela when she sat across from her. “Did you want me to get chewed out by Hana, or what?”

Laela waved a dismissive hand. “That wasn’t my intention,” she said. “Though I think it’s fair the way you were embarrassing me in front of my crew.”

“I-I wasn’t!”

“You were _implying_ things.”

“When am I ever _not_ implying things?” Saika blew a stray hair from her face. “Especially when it comes to you. Speaking of, since you’re back, can we—”

“No.” Laela shifted in her seat. “I mean, I would like to spend time with you Sai, really, I would, but… I’m leaving in the evening.”

“ _What?_ ” Saika frowned. “You’re barely back a day and you’re already heading out to sea again?”

“Yes. I’m sorry, Sai.”

The oni rolled her eyes. “Do you hate me or something?” she said. “Did I do something to fuck things up between us? Because if you’re rushing out to sea so quickly—”

“No, no. You didn’t do anything. Sai. This is, this is my job. This is what I do for a living: Claim treasure. Make it my own. The only one at fault here is me.”

“Aren’t you rich? Horrifically rich? Why do you feel the need to go out and pillage, steal, and whatever else you do with your crew again? You could die, Laela!”

Laela glanced aside. “It’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

“ _Ugh_.” Saika gave a bedraggled sigh. “Whatever. What’s so urgent that you’ve got to leave so early, though? Can’t it wait?”

Laela shook her head. “No, it can’t.” She slid fingers into her interior pocket and withdrew a few leaflets of paper. Unfolding each one, she slid them in front of Saika. “Have you heard of the Tide Jewels?” she asked. “It’s a common myth on this continent.”

Saika studied the set: The first was an elaborate illustration of a young woman being chased by a snarling dragon under the curl of a gigantic wave, her breast sliced in two as she attempted to conceal something white within it; the second was a page scribbled with faded, illegible writing with only a small illustration of an island in the upper right; and the last was a redrawn rendition of the island, painstakingly mapped as if done by a professional cartographer’s hand. Saika studied these pages one by one for a few minutes before leaning back, gently bumping the serving of green tea that was placed by her when she was lost in thought.

“I have heard of them, yea,” Saika said. “I don’t know the myth, though. It’s probably something only told by them. Y’know, the royals of the north.”

Laela nodded her head. “I’ll give you a basic rundown,” she began. “This woman here”—she tapped a finger on the first page, the illustration—“is known as Princess Tamatori. She stole away one of the Tide Jewels from the dragon, Ryujin, upon putting him to sleep with music. He eventually awakened and chased her. To protect the large pearl, she cut open her breast and placed the jewel inside—”

Saika snorted. “What an awful thing to do to a perfectly good pair of ti—”

Laela flicked her forehead. As Saika moaned in pain, she continued, “Princess Tamatori managed to get away, but not without losing her life. She bled to death when she washed up on shore, but the jewel was safely brought back to the its rightful owners. That was until it was stolen again and disappeared.” Laela leaned in. “Well, until I managed to track it down.”

Saika, sipping on her tea, choked. “Wait, wait, wait,” she said, smearing away a dribble from her chin. “The myth’s real?”

“The myth’s probably not real,” Laela said. “Something extravagant told to up the jewel’s worth. But the jewel itself?” The blonde’s eyes sparkled. “That, without a doubt, is _real_.”

“You’ve seen it?”

Laela shook her head. “No, but this”—she tapped the second sheet of paper—“is an order sheet. An old one, but definitely an order sheet for a large pearl. I got it from one of the pirates that attacked my ship. The pearl’s been shortened to TJ throughout the sheet. That _has_ to stand for Tide Jewel. Whoever ordered it is on this island.” She cocked her head at the map. “I’m headed there. I want that jewel.”

Saika furrowed her brow, unable to reflect Laela’s enthusiasm. “Do you really need it?” she asked, voice falling a doleful octave. “I saw that haul you brought in at the docks. That hunk of silver is _huge_. Why do you need a pearl that’s probably worth only, shit, like only a quarter of that?”

“It’s not the money I care about,” Laela said. “It’s the pearl itself. It’s one-of-a-kind; there’s nothing else like it in the world—besides its twin, but that disappeared long, long ago. I want to make it mine, to be known as Laela—owner of the one and only Tide Jewel.”

Saika sighed. “I guess I can’t compete against your greater love,” she said. “Or should I say, greater greed.”

Laela smiled. “I’m glad we understand each other,” she said. “That’s why I’ll be leaving later on this evening.”

Saika’s heart pulled at that admission. Part of her, the part she had long ignored since ever forming a relationship with Laela, clawed its way up. She didn’t want to be separated again from her—not when she barely had a chance to sit down and talk with her, let alone anything else. The oni reached a hand across and wrapped it about Laela’s wrist. The blonde stilled, stricken by Saika’s seriousness.

“I want to come with you,” Saika said. The words left her before she had a chance to reconsider what that would mean, but the awestruck look Laela shot her way spoke volumes. “I’m tired of waiting around on land for you to come back to me, so let me come with you. Let me help you get the Tide Jewel. I’m capable.”

“Are you sure?” Laela drew her hand back to slip it over Saika’s. “We’ll be on a boat for a few days and, when we reach land, it’d be a trek to where the Tide Jewel probably is. We may have to fight and get seriously hurt. Would you be able to handle that?”

“The boat will be a problem, without a doubt,” Saika said, groaning. “I don’t do well with the rocking, but I’ll muscle through it. I’ve been through worse. And when has a little fight ever bothered me? If someone wants to go up against me, I’ll kick their ass!”

“No, that’s not what I meant, Sai,” Laela said. “Would you be able to handle _me_ fighting against someone else? Risk seeing me get hurt?”

“I’ll kill the fucker who ever lays a hand on you,” Saika snarled.

“That’s what I was worried about,” Laela said. “Saika, I have a no-kill policy. I never take a life when I’m out on a treasure hunt. It isn’t worth taking when it comes to what I’m after. If you’re going to join me for this, I can’t have you killing anyone. Think you can do that?”

“I can’t guarantee that,” Saika said. When Laela opened her mouth to protest, she added, “I don’t mean me—I can hold back. I won’t kill anyone. But if someone gets my blood on them, I can’t guarantee if they will live. It’s poisonous, remember?”

“Right, right,” she said. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. For now, you’re set in stone about this, yes? That you will be coming?”

Saika nodded her head twice. “I sure as hell will be,” she said, grinning. “There’s no way I’m letting you leave me again!”

 

* * *

 

The red-orange of the setting sun glistened brightly off the wine-dark sea, gilding the outskirts of Hinagiku Village in its brilliance. It made the metallic etching of Laela’s ship—the Night Rose—glint as the ship rocked from the ebb and flow of the waters beneath. The wind picked up as Laela and Saika neared the boat; the ship’s sails flapping wildly as if beckoning its captain to board and finally take it back to sea.

As Laela regarded her ship with confidence, shifting hands to hips and taking in its glory, Saika sulked behind her as if trying to hide. The blonde glanced over her shoulder to her and shook her head.

“Where’d all that confidence go?” she asked. “Weren’t you just brimming with it?”

Saika ducked her head. “There’s a difference between talking big and actually, uh, acting big,” she said. “Especially when I’m in front of something bigger than _me._ ”

Laela couldn’t help but laugh. “Well, swallow your pride, Sai,” she said. “If you intend on joining me for this, you’re going to have to get on that boat sooner or later. We’re taking off in a few minutes.”

“That’s all of the time I need,” Saika said, drawing in a deep breath. “I’ll be on that boat, no matter what!”

Despite saying this, Laela still had to physically drag Saika on board. The oni’s knees quaked her first steps on, but concern for Saika’s well-being became a shelved thought as Laela shifted into her role as the ship’s captain. At once, her crew scrambled to work as she barked out instructions and jabbed her finger at stations that weren’t manned. Soon, the Night Rose swiftly took to the sea, Hinagiku Village dissipating like a memory into the darkness of the night that fell over the day.

When Laela’s ship had taken on a steady pace, she dismissed the members of her crew milling about to their quarters and pushed aside her role as captain for the day. She sought out Saika and found her curled in on herself at the front of the ship, leaning against the side for support. Laela rushed to the oni’s side and hefted her straight, but Saika ended up gagging. She flung her head overboard, but all she did was give dry heaves.

“Are you okay, Sai?” Laela asked, rubbing soothing circles on her back. “Did you drink or eat anything?”

“I, I— _urp_ —I tried to,” Saika said. “Nothing wants to stay down. I’ve been gagging on an empty stomach for hours. You don’t— _ugh—_ have anything for this, do you? Or know of some remedy?”

Laela shook her head. “No, I don’t have anything nor know of anything to give you,” she said. “Neither I nor the crew suffer from seasickness, so I never found the need.”

“Then, then just keep talking,” Saika said. “As long as I don’t concentrate on my stomach, I should f-feel better.”

Laela dipped her head, but a topic of conversation didn’t come to mind. She wracked her brain for an idea, but doing this came to no avail. She opted for the first thing that wandered into her mind, “You were adamant to come with me on this trip. Why? It’s unlike you.”

“D-do I need a reason to be with you?” Saika asked.

“No, you don’t, but…” Laela cast her eyes to the darkened sea. “My life and role out on the seas is different than when I’m with you. You know that.”

“Is it wrong to want to know this part of your life, too?”

“I never said that, but…”

“You don’t want me to know.”

Laela couldn’t help a small nod. “In some haphazard way, yes. I don’t want you to know about this part of my life.”

Saika frowned. “You know I hate secrets,” she said. “They’re as bad as lies. I thought we agreed never to keep things from each other.”

“W-we did,” Laela said. “We did, but am I really lying to you if I don’t feel the need to tell you?”

“It feels like a lie, even if you don’t count it as one.”

Laela sighed. “Sai, you know I love you. I’ll _always_ love you, but there’s bigger things in this world that I’m after and you—”

“I’m only part of it,” Saika finished.

Laela bowed her head. “Yes.”

Saika gave a small laugh. “What, what is our relationship, anyway?” she asked, digging nails into the wood of the ship. “Are we lovers? Fuck buddies? Am I just a lay when you’re on land?” She banged a fist, shackle clattering about her wrist. “What am I to you, Laela?”

Laela looked at her incredulously. “Sai, you never… You never cared about such things,” she said. “I thought you were fine with never defining our relationship.”

“I was,” Saika said. “But the more you went away, the more I had to wait, and I soon realized I _hated_ it. I hated waiting for you, but I also always wanted to see you. To be with you. It’s a painful cycle every single damn time you leave.” The oni bowed her head. “I sound like a little kid saying this, but I’m attached to you, Laela. I don’t want to let you go.”

Laela drew in a sharp breath. Saika always reflected an indescribable strength in everything she did, everything she said. It’s what initially attracted the blonde to her—the one aspect of her personality that blossomed from basic admiration to genuine love. To see Saika relinquish all Laela’s grown to learn about her—to let herself be vulnerable—in an instance bewildered her. This wasn’t the Saika she knew.

 _Or maybe I still have so much to learn about her_ , Laela thought.

Yet, the idea of a domestic life with Saika by her side immediately turned Laela away. Once in her life already she was tied into a compulsory relationship, bore a _child_ in that compulsory relationship, and thought that is all her life would amount to. Once she obtained the freedom to do as she pleased, however, she didn’t want to be shackled again. To know the freedom of the seas was to know the freedom of life, Laela had decreed the first time she captained a ship, and giving that up even for someone she loved so dearly wasn’t possible. Even when it was someone who knew what a prison carved out by others was like.

“I’ll let you define our relationship however you like,” Laela said, holding Saika’s gaze. “I’ll also leave up to you when you want this relationship to end.”

“Laela, I—”

“I know,” Laela said. “I know you don’t have any answers now, but in time, I’m sure you will, Sai. When that time comes, I’ll be content with your answers no matter what they are.”

Saika nodded her head, turning her head to the sea just as Laela did. Silence permeated the air between them, making it feel heavy blanket about their shoulders. Laela realized they had breached a commonly ignored aspect of their relationship, and of course, it was only Saika who had the courage to tackle it head-on. It was so unsurprising that it was almost laughable. When the oni began to chuckle lightly, it didn’t take Laela by surprise.

“That certainly took a turn,” Saika said. “I wasn’t expecting to have such a serious conversation while my insides feel like they’re devouring themselves.”

Laela rubbed the back of her neck. “S-sorry,” she apologized. “I’m the one who made things serious. It isn’t really a conversation we should be having, anyway. We’re on a job now. We can save that talk for when we’re back on land.”

Saika waved a dismissive hand. “No, I’m glad,” she said. “You, you picked a topic that kept me talking, I don’t feel as sick as I did before. Thank you. Too bad I can’t have you talking to me all night; it’d be a great solution to the hell I’m not looking forward to when I have to sleep. How much longer until we reach that island?”

“The estimated time is another twelve or so hours,” Laela said. “So, it’ll be a while.”

Saika winced. “That’s seriously a long time, but this island… It’s so close to land. Why, why didn’t anyone try and claim the Tide Jewel yet?”

Laela hummed in thought. “There’s only two reasons I can think of,” she said. “The first is that no one knew it was there. Well, save the seller and the buyer. The second is that the person who purchased it is a big name among criminals. Have you ever heard of Sakurai?”

Saika blinked at the mention of the name. “Yea,” she said. “I actually dealt with him before—business-wise, I mean. I delivered a few crates of something or other for him a few years ago. Tall, broad-shouldered guy. Could probably squish a kid’s head with just the strength of his hand alone. _That’s_ who you’re trying to take the Tide Jewel from?”

Laela inclined her head. “Seems to be the case,” she said.

“Honestly, Laela,” Saika said, sighing. “You’re really testing death this time, aren’t you?”

“It’s a risk I’m willing to take,” she delivered breezily. “You know that, Sai.”


End file.
